Once Upon A Time In Oxford
by Dizzle
Summary: When he left Tortuga, Captain Sparrow had everything he needed to reach the Fountain of Youth. A map, a boat, his compass, and some rum. But a flash from the past has caused the pirate to take a detour. PostAWE. JackOC.


**AN: So...this is short. I know. It's only like 660 words or something? The chapters will get longer, I promise. I've got a bit of it written already and I just had a hard time breaking what I have done into separate chapters. I want to make it one humongous chapter with 800,000,000 words. :) Okay, just kidding.**

**Anyway, I want to apologize for not having it finished, or mostly finished, or an idea of when it will be finished. In the middle of it, I was listening to the Beatles for some inspiration and I got an idea for _My Father's Gun_. So, I stopped this, wrote that, then started on those Life With Derek fics, completely forgetting about this one. Truth is, I have tons of ideas that can mean nothing to the actual plot of the story. I feel kind of like the writer/producers of Lost. It's like I have this beginning and an end and a number of episodes I have to take to get from one to the other, but I don't have enough plot to fill all those episodes, so I put in some random crap. The only difference is, I don't have that time frame, but I still have the random crap. Well, I found this forgotten work earlier and decided to continue it, no matter the fact that I have _no_ idea where it's going to go. Hopefully I can get some feedback and you guys can help me decide. **

**Right, well, I think I've rambled long enough. You guys enjoy. Reviews are the best.**

_Disclaimer: No, I don't. Surprise, surprise._

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**Prologue**

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"Cap'n, where d'ya think we should be goin' now? After Barbossa and tha Pearl?"

Captain Sparrow studied the map in front of him then looked up at Gibbs. How Joshamee had managed to commandeer a ship, hire a crew, and find the weary pirate all by himself was beyond Jack's comprehension at this point, as well as his concern. He'd never known the man to think of such an idea by himself in his life, or, at least as long as he had known him.

"No, Mr. Gibbs. I do not care to worry about Hector or the Pearl just now. Besides, more than likely it is them who are in search of me. You simply found me first." The pirate held his compass in one hand, looking intently between it and that map which sat atop the desk. Tracing lines with his fingers, he noticed how far he had actually been from his destination when he got picked up and grimaced. He had not found the legendary Fountain of Youth by the time Gibbs caught up to him, nor did he think himself to be close.

He had been, however, unbelievably close. And that, in itself, was enough to make him rethink his current position. Bah. If only he wasn't so damn confused!

_Not that I'm saying I'm confused. Not at all. I'm simply…flustered. No. Not flustered either. Captain Jack Sparrow does __**not**__ get flustered. Or confused._

Jack groaned quietly, a hand on his head, the other steadying his weight on the table. He needed some rum. Bad. Maybe then he could think clearly.

While he had been out at sea in the tiny boat, all by himself, Jack Sparrow had much time to think, something he honestly and unashamedly did not do so often. He thought about things he had done in the past, his adventures and his childhood. He considered what he would do once he became immortal and wondered just how exactly that whole immortal fountain thing worked.

Jack took a seat in the captain's chair and picked up a piece of paper, reading the familiar scrawl carefully, thoughtfully. He thought he heard Gibbs ask something, though it was hazy in his mind, about a heading. The pirate paid him no mind, still studying the words before him. Not that he needed to; he'd read them so many times, they were practically memorized.

Unfortunately for Jack, while he had been lost at sea and thinking, he once again came to the realization that he did not know what he wanted. Correction, he knew what he wanted, he just wasn't so sure he wanted it right now. Did that make sense? No matter, all that concerned him was that his oh-so-trusty compass would not point in one direction, something the captain was uncomfortably becoming way too accustomed to dealing with.

However, after several weeks of nothing but spinning and mindless drifting in the open ocean, the compass had finally come to a stop. Jack was surprised when he saw which direction it was pointing. Not towards his prized Fountain of Youth at all; in fact, quite the opposite. Fortunately for him, it was the day after that his first mate had happened upon his dinghy. Jack had to admit that the ship Gibbs had embezzled was a nice vessel. The name was a bit silly…_Wary Widow_ or _Widow's Payback_…something along those lines. And it in no way compared to his beloved Pearl. But it was serving him well and was, all things considered, petty fast.

"Captain?" Gibbs said somewhat loudly, shaking the pirate from his thoughts. Jack set the letter down, folding it and sticking it back into the envelope from which it had come.

"We shall go west, Mr. Gibbs." He said, using one hand to slam the compass closed. He didn't want to look at it anymore; it was making him dizzy. "To La Isla Bahia, if you please. Make way as soon as possible."


End file.
